Posts by Robyn Gallagher
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Ugh. What a horrible experience - my thoughts are not just with the people of Christchurch, but all those from out-of-town visiting family for Christmas. I really hope that things aren't too munted, and that everyone can have as much of a good Christmas as possible.
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It is a matter of serendipity that the pohutukawa tree throws out a blossom apparently perfectly timed and styled for for a religious and cultural festival that developed on the far side of the globe.
When I was a kid, I always associated pohutukawa with family holidays at the beach, or trips to Auckland. It always seemed a little exotic, this bright, extravagant tree that didn't normally grow in my part of the country.
Won't someone think of the poor South Islanders and inland North Islanders who can't enjoy pohutukawa in full bloom? Or is that what the plastic pohutukawa Christmas decorations are for?
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Hard News: Merry Christmas, Blossoms, in reply to Danielle,
I'm spending Christmas Day in hospital with my present: the newest member of our family, born yesterday.
Excellent news! And rather a good day to be born on, if I do say so myself.
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Hard News: Word of the Year 2011 -- The Vote!, in reply to Steve Cooke,
I really can’t work out the fuss about ‘munted’. It’s not as though it’s a new word for 2011, spontaneously springing from the rubble of Christchurch. It has been around for at least 20 years to my knowledge.
You could make a similar argument about almost every word on the list.
Yeah, munted has been around for years, but it was only used by a particular subculture. But then along came Mayor Bob, who on 25 February wryly told a reporter, "The main sewer trunks are seriously munted. I believe that is the technical term."
With that word, everyone knew what he meant. It wasn't "broken" or "pakaru" or "seriously damaged" or "in need of repair". It was munted. Real munted as.
And people started using the word to describe other things that were munted. People who'd never had dreamed of using 'munted' before suddenly found themselves using it because no other word would fit. The bookcase is munted. The toilet is munted. The garage is munted. The water supply is munted.
It moved beyond jokey slang and became an essential word to describe a state that had suddenly appeared, in need of an adjective.
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Hard News: Name That Food Blog, in reply to Joanna,
Stick it in your mouth
I like this suggestion.
Wait, what?
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Nomz.
Edit: Snap! Though mine is with a Z, so it's all edgy.
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That's a good selection of words. My voting criteria - I look at words that have burst into popular culture in 2011 with a distinct new meaning, and that have a life offline as well as online.
As we have three hashtags in the list now, I wonder if there should be a separate prize for hashtag of the year. I mean, I've never heard anyone use "hash ar double-yew see twenty eleven" in speech so probably not a WOTY winner , but yet it was all over Twitter.
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Out of interest, is EQNZ ever used verbally? Or is it purely an online term?
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Capture: Colour is the new black, in reply to Venetia King,
p.s. I like the carpet; at least, how it looks in that first photo of the set. Rather aesthetically pleasing.
Yes, that carpet is great. That shade of pink is s0 2011. It's almost a pity that it will soon all be covered with shelves and furniture, but at least we have a photo to remember it. And it fits perfectly with the theme of this post!
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Looking at - *ahem* - the original photos, it's amazing to see those old cars driven by young dudes. But back then, the cars would have been, what, 20 years old - the perfect age for a reasonably priced second-hand car.
But now, all those young stallions with the sexual bellbottom trousers and the tight shirts, they're all older, balder, fatter, greyer. But I bet many of them still have the cars.